Google has unveiled an in-house designed self-driving prototype that aims to improve road safety.

Google has unveiled an in-house designed self-driving prototype that aims to improve road safety.

Google has been playing around with the idea of autonomous vehicle technology for quite some time and they even obtained a patent for Transitioning a Mixed-mode Vehicle to Autonomous Mode. In the last couple of years they used several Audi TT and Toyota Prius test cars to develop the technology and now they have unveiled their very own autonomous vehicle.

Far from being a looker, the two-seater prototype doesn't have a steering wheel or pedals as it relies on a software system which includes Google Maps and built-in radar sensors and lasers to do all the driving. The list of features is quite short as the car doesn't even have a radio system but it does boast a display providing details about the route along with a start & stop button.

They plan on building approximately 100 prototypes and the first batches will come with manual controls to use in case something goes wrong. The vehicles will have electric propulsion and for safety reasons will be limited to 25 mph (40 km/h).

Note: The attached video was shot in California where volunteers agreed to take a short ride on the streets of Mountain View.